A black and white night ...

E-mail this article

To:

Invalid E-mail address

Add a personal message:(80 character limit)Your E-mail:

Invalid E-mail address

Sending your article

Your article has been sent.

It was only a year ago that awards season was hit by a case of scarlet fever. Every sartorial stunner was some shade of red. Even the red-carpet blunders (shame on you, Heidi Klum and Nicole Kidman) were redder than a plastic poinsettia from the corner 99 cent store.

But it’s another season, and time for a change. Last night’s Golden Globes went black, white, and, for those truly on trend, a combination of black and white (kudos to you, Kate Winslet and Claire Danes!). The grand dame of the evening, Angelina Jolie (left), opted for a glacial satin white Atelier Versace gown with a red accent sweeping along her collarbones, perfectly matching her lips. Jessica Chastain wore a pearl-accented Givenchy white dress, offering old Hollywood glamour. Rooney Mara sported a daring, modern black strappy Nina Ricci gown. Nearly every name in Hollywood with a decent stylist - from Mila Kunis to Charlize Theron - stayed at one end of the color spectrum or the other.

Lavender is dangerous fashion territory. The color can appear young and fresh, or quickly fall into the territory of a hausfrau muumuu. So when star Octavia Spencer arrived in her very lavender Tadashi Shoji gown with embellishment at the bodice, there was an opportunity for disaster. But the cut and the unusual color were a wise choice. Spencer was not the only one to brave the shade. The avant-garde Tilda Swinton also successfully pulled off lavender with panache.